Nick Riffel: Causing a Racquet

TVHS senior wins national championship

By Mike Brohard Sports Editor

Posted:
03/11/2013 09:05:48 PM MDT

Thompson Valley High School senior Nick Riffel poses with the medal he earned by winning the USA Racquetball High School National Championship earlier this month in St. Louis. Riffel, who is ranked third nationally in his age group, is hoping to carry that success over into the Junior National tournament.
(Timothy Hurst)

Like many high school seniors, Nick Riffel was taking a hard look at the end approaching and sizing up his options. An accomplished racquetball player, the Thompson Valley High School student had never entered the USA Raquetball National High School tournament, and, considering this was his last chance, decided now was the time.

"It's my senior year in high school, so it was my last chance to play it," Riffel said of his trip to St. Louis for the tournament. "It's also my last year of juniors as well, so it was like, I might as well give it a shot this year and see how I fare."

Ranked third in the country at his age group, he figured his chances were pretty good, but he was also still seeking a major individual title to add to his resume. He's placed in the top four at Junior Nationals, but was still looking to play that final match.

Now he has. Not only that, he was the last guy standing after four days of play, winning the high school national championship by beating Connor Laffey of Salem, Oregon, 15-10, 15-13.

In the tournament, Riffel won four matches after opening with a bye as the No. 2 overall seed. He dropped only one game en route to the title, and was one of only two players to blank an opponent in a game. The other -- Justin Benson -- Riffel dispatched in the semifinals, 15-14, 15-6. Riffel had never played any of the guys in the tournament draw, which didn't affect him either way. He felt he moved through pretty well thanks to a serve that was working well, producing some momentum-building aces.

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"I'd never won a national singles title before," Riffel said. "I know guys I played have. The guy in the semifinals, he's younger than me, but he's won a couple of national titles before, so beating some of those guys, it does get me thinking toward Junior National this year and hopefully winning that one and succeeding from there."

Nick Riffel works on his game at the Chilson Center, demonstrating a serve that he said was a key part of his run to the national championship. He also tries to build the sport on a youth level, teaching a class once a week at the facility.
(Timothy Hurst)

Not a bad showing for an athlete who has basically been learning on his own. He's been playing for eight years, getting introduced to the sport by his mother when they lived in Auburn, Calif. Moving to Loveland, he found it hard to find people his own age to play with, so he's been forced to grow and improve by playing against men.

"When I first moved here, there was a lot of competition at Orchards Athletic Club," Riffel said. "There were a lot of guys from Fort Collins and Greeley. Now it's just me doing drills on my own and playing with guys in town. I've been lucky, because there's a guy in Boulder, there's a guy who's ranked eighth in the world, and there's a real good kid in Denver I can play with every now and then."

Closer to home, he plays as much as he can with Mike O'Brien, and the two of them have become a pretty dynamic doubles tandem, sitting as the two-time defending Colorado Open doubles champions. O'Brien, who first met Riffel four years ago, has seen his growth and improvement. He used to test him mentally, trying to rattle him on the court. Now, he can't. Put that together with what O'Brien calls a deceptive serve and a never-quit attitude, Riffel is tough to handle.

"I would say his mental capacity far surpasses his years," said O'Brien, who won the Colorado state title the same week Riffel was winning his crown. "He's very cool-headed. He doesn't get frustrated. In my opinion, his sportsmanship and his dedication to the sport has served him well."

O'Brien also calls him a gym rat, crediting his younger partner with getting him to the court more often to play. A year ago, Riffel was certified as a coach, and he approached Chilson Recreation Center officials to start a youth program. Now, one day a week, he usually gets four or five youngsters to join him while he teaches them the game.

"I love just kind of getting more kids into the sports, seeing more people have interest in it," Riffel said. "Racquetball is kind of a dying sport for youth. The kids have their football and other big sports, so seeing kids doing it and enjoying it is a big thing for me. I hope to grow it."

Riffel, whose play has earned him an equipment sponsor ship from Ektelon, also hopes to grow himself. His next big target is to take the high school title and turn it into a Junior National title in Des Moines, Iowa, in June. He's won there before as a doubles and mixed doubles player, earning a spot on the USA Junior World team. Two years ago, he and his doubles partner took third at Worlds, and for five of the past six years, he's won the mixed doubles title at Junior Nationals with Kelani Bailey of Virginia.

"Just seeing that I got there," Riffel said did more for his confidence than anything. "I started a lot later than a lot of kids, so being able to get there and beating some kids who have been playing a lot longer than me, it was kind of like putting it out there and saying, 'Guys, I'm here too.'"